Edhi, who was 88 years old, had been suffering from complications related to a kidney failure, for which he had been undergoing treatment at SIUT since 2013.
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Recalling her association with Edhi, she said that during her stay in Pakistan, Edhi had provided a separate room to her for accommodation and respecting her religious beliefs, he had also made idols of Hindu gods and goddesses available to her for worshipping.
President Mamnoon Hussain, Chief Minister Punjab Shahbaz Sharif, his Sindh counterpart Qaim Ali Shah, Governor Sindh Ishratul Ibad, IG Sindh AD Khawaja, Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Muhammad Zakaullah and Corps Commander Karachi Lt Gen Naveed Mukhtar among others are set to attend the funeral.
Edhi foundation had taken care of Indian girl Geeta during her over a decade-long stay in Pakistan. The Prime Minister said though he wished to attend late Edhi’s funeral in person, however his present position deprives him of the ability to do so.
Mr Sharif, who is recuperating in London after undergoing surgery last month, was not able to attend the funeral.
Edhi was well-known for berating Islamist groups such as Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) for their attacks on civilians, criticising the government for incompetence and corruption and denouncing the elites for dodging taxes.
Edhi came from a family of Gujarati traders and arrived in Pakistan in 1947. He started welfare mission in 1951 by opening his first home for homeless and sick in the Kharadar area in Karachi. The new government’s failure to assist his ailing mother was the event that put Edhi on to the path of social work and philanthropy.
Edhi and his wife, Bilquis Edhi, received the 1986 Ramon Magsaysay Award for public service.
Talking to a private news channel, Malala said, “He was not only loved in Pakistan but across the world”. He was the founder of the country’s largest welfare organisation, Edhi Foundation.
At present the Edhi foundation runs a number of charities including orphanages, old-age homes and free ambulance service.
Edhi’s war was against prejudice, cruelty. He was considered “Pakistan’s most respected figure” and was seen by some as nearly a saint.
Hardliners branded him an infidel and his work un-Islamic. He was conferred several national awards for his services to humanity. In the end, the huge moral weight of his life’s work and personal creed obscured all else, and was reflected in the outpouring of grief and emotion across Pakistan on Saturday.
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“We have to conserve water for our future generations and that is why I don’t misuse this precious gift of nature”, he said in an earlier conversation.
